Skate tooth guard



March 3, 1964 s. K. JOHNS SKATE TOOTH GUARD Filed Jan. 17, 1962 IN VEN TOR.

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fin K k V/ 6 k d m m n W United States Patent 3,123,372 SKATE TOOTH GU "I Stanley K. Johns, Quebec, Quebec, Canada, assignor to St. Lawrence Manufacturing Company, Inc., Gilfard, Quebec, Canada, a corporation of Quebec Filed Jan. 17, 1962, Ser. No. 166,828 11 Claims. (Cl. 28011.38)

This invention relates to a device for use with ice skate blades having a series of teeth on the lower forward end of the runner. Such teeth are sharp to assure their effectiveness and therefore constitute a danger an anyone carrying the skates in the hands or on the body, or when the skates are packed with other articles for transport. Furthermore, a great deal of difficulty has been experienced by manufacturers of ice skate outfits, i.e. boots with skate blades attached, in making shipments to retail outlets. Such outfits are customarily packed in pairs in fiber cartons, and the unprotected sharp teeth on one blade will often deface the adjacent boot. Also, the sharp teeth often cut through the fiber carton in transit, thus damaging the container.

It is a primary object of the invention to provide an economical covering for such teeth, easily applied or removed, and which will be held in protective position during normal handling.

It is a further object to provide a device of this type which can be molded in one piece from available materials such as plastic or rubber, herein generally referred to as plastic, and which has the necessary flexibility and elasticity to assure at all times a snug fit of the guard over the skate teeth, but wherein one size of the guard can be satisfactorily used for tooth protection on a wide range of skate sizes.

It is a further object to provide a novel self-locking plastic closure for use in various locations where two tabs are to be repeatedly connected and separated, with or without a dependent body connecting the two tabs together.

The above and other objects of the invention will be clear from the following description when considered in connection with the drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the forward end of a typical skate blade with the tooth guard applied.

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view thereof.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the guard taken on the line 44 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the guard in its open, relaxed position, before being applied to a skate blade.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary view on an enlarged scale of the attachment devices employed.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged elevational view similar to FIG. 1, but omitting the skate, illustrating a modification of the invention.

Referring now to the details of the drawings, the guard 2, in its relaxed condition, is of general saddle-shape and includes a curved outer bearing section 4 and an inner attachment section 6 connected to the outer section by opposed side flanges 7 and 8. The outer section 4 is preferably of arcuate shape, corresponding generally to the arcuate formation of the row of teeth 10 formed on skate blade ll, and is of bowed cross section. The skate shown is of standard designwherein the teeth It) are positioned at the forward lower surface of the blade, the interior of the blade having the usual cutaway section 12 providing an inner bearing surface 14 for receiving the attachment section of the guard.

The material of the outer section 4 is preferably wider than the thickness of the blade and may be made of a thickness greater than the thickness of the side flanges 7 and 8 so as to have the requisite rigidity along the bridging length of the outer section. Centrally thereof there is provided an inwardly projecting tooth 16, constituting a contact member, of the same size and shape or slightly larger than the average size skate tooth and engageable between two such teeth, as shown in FIG. 1. It will be understood that two or more such teeth can be provided on the guard but it has been found that one projecting tooth is sufiicient and with one tooth there is always a snug fit of the guard tooth 16 between skate teeth 10.

The side flanges 7 and 8 are preferably skeletonized, that is, each comprises edge strips 18 and 20 respectively. Adjacent to the outer ends of the strips 18 and 20 and inwardly of the outer section 4 they are formed with inwardly projecting extensions 22 (see FIG. 5) which serve to reinforce the strips at their outer ends and to engage the side faces of the skate blade to help in maintaining the guard in its proper symmetrical position on the blade.

The attachment sections on the guard include enlarged portions 24 and 26, shown as disk-shaped bodies having free lower abutment shoulders 27 engageable over said bearing surface 14. The disk 24 is formed at its center with an orifice 28 and disk 26 is formed with a cooperating central projection or finger 30 adapted to be received within the orifice 28.

The size and shape of the orifice 28 and projection 30 are critical in that the projection must be capable of being readily inserted into the orifice, yet it must have a snug fit within the orifice throughout its length so that the parts will not separate freely regardless of the extent to which the projection extends through the orifice. The projection 30 is accordingly formed of gradually, but slightly increasing cross-section from its base on disk 26 to its free end, as illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 6. The size adjacent the base is just suflicient to snugly fill the orifice 23, the outer enlarged end being of a size such that it can be forcibly pressed into or removed from the orifice 28 due to the resilience of the material.

The interior surface of the orifice 28 and the exterior surface of the projection 30 are preferably smooth and rounded. The advance end of the projection 30 is formed with an enlarged tip a. This provides an enlarged point which may be slightly rounded for facilitating the introduction of the projection 30 into the orifice 28. The orifice 28 in disk 24 is of frusto-conical form with the advance (inner) end b larger than the outer end 0. The end b of the orifice is preferably slightly larger than the tip a of projection 3% to facilitate entrance of the projection into the orifice. The smaller outer end c of the orifice is approximately the size of or slightly smaller than the base of projection 30. The reverse taper of the exterior of projection 30 and the interior holding surface of orifice 28 provides an economical, effective and adjustable connection for holding the guard in position on the skate blade regardless of the extent the projection 30 is passed through the orifice 23.

There is illustrated in FIG. 7 a modification of the invention, wherein a reenforcing body 32 is supplied for the guard. The body 32, shown as a figured formation and formed integrally with the guard, is attached at 34 to the lower free edge of the disk 24. The two side edges of body 32 extend to and are joined to the side flanges 8 at 35 and 36. It will be understood that there is a similar reenforcing body (not shown) formed as part of the other side flanges 7 and disk 26. The bodies 32 serve to reenforce and support the side flanges 7 and 8 and to maintain their position with respect to the attachment disks 24 and 26. They can also be utilized to provide any desired form of decoration or other marking for the guard.

The guard herein disclosed is preferably injectionmolded from a plastic or similar rubber-like material, polyethylene, for example. Many suitable materials are readily available in commercial quantities. The material selected should have flexibility and moderate elasticity and should be sufficiently tough'to withstand the rugged usage to which the guards are subjected.

With the above construction there is provided a new type of self-locking plastic closure, wherein the disks 24 and 26 are readily attached to one another by hand pressure against the outer faces of the disks, the disks being retained in their various adjusted positions throughout the length of the projection 30 but readily separable by tension applied to-the disks.

In the use of the saddle-shaped guard herein disclosed, the attachment-arms are separated and the guard is pulled up against the teeth of the skate blade with the guard tooth 16 engaged between a pair of central teeth of the skate. The projection 30 is then forced through the orifice 28- to secure the two attachment sections together and the skate teeth are effectively covered. For most skate blades the disks 24 and 26 will rest on bearingsurface 14 of the skate, as shown in FIG. 1. This may require a slight extension of the elastic strips 18 and 26. If the space from the curved outer section 4 to the bearingsurface 14 on the skate is slightly less this slack will be taken upby the outward bowing of the side flanges 7 and 8; If this space is substantially greater, the disks 24 and 26 will bear against the sides of the skate blade, the projection 30'being sufficiently long to be passed through and supported in the orifice 28 with projection 3i! resting upon the bearing-surface 14.

Having now described my invention, it will be understood that variations of the exact constructions may be made and that my invention is to be limited only as set forth'in the appended claims.

I-claim:

1. A unitary guard for the tooth section of a skate blade which comprises a resilient moderately elastic saddle-shaped body having a bearing section for contact with the edge of the tooth section of the blade and side flanges terminating in free ends, said free ends being provided with means for attachment to each other, said side flanges being sufficiently long to provide attachment of the free ends above the edge of the skate blade opposite the tooth section thereof, said bearing section having integrally formed on its inner surface a projecting means adapted for interlocking registry with the tooth section of the skate blade, the outer surface of said bearing section serving to prevent the tooth section of the skate blade from causing damage, said bearing section being sufficiently long to cover the tooth section of the skate blade.

2. The guard recited in claim 1, said projecting means comprising a tooth, engageable between the teeth of said skate blade.

3. The guard recited in claim 1, said side flanges being skeletonized to extend from said outer section to said free ends in strips, with intervening free spaces between said strips.

4. The guard recited in claim 3, said outer bearing section being of generally arcuate shape from end to end and of bowed cross sectional form.

5. A unitary guard for the tooth section of a skate blade which comprises a resilient moderately elastic saddle-shaped body having a bearing section for contact with the tooth section of the skate blade and side flanges extending along the sides of the skate blade and terminating in free ends above the skate blade, one of said free ends being provided with an attachment orifice and the other free end being provided with an elongated projection of larger cross sectional area than said orifice and being proportioned to be forcibly projected through said orifice for attachment of the free ends above the skate blade opposite the tooth section thereof, said bearing section having integrally formed on its inner surface a tooth-like projection adapted for interlocking registry with the tooth section of the skate blade, the outer surface thereof being smooth and sufiiciently long to cover the blade tooth section.

6. The guardrecited in claim 5, and a figured formation integrally formed on said free ends and on said side flanges for reinforcingthe same.

7. The guard recited in claim 6, said figured formation comprising an indicating label.

8. The guard recited in claim 5, said elongated projection being of gradually increasing cross section from the base tothe outer end thereof.

9. The guard recited in claim 5, said free ends being connected to said side flanges and being formed with free abutment shoulders engageable with said blade bearing surface.

10. The guard recited in claim 5, said side flanges including inwardly projecting, opposed extensions engageable with the opposite side faces of said blade for positioning said'outer bearing section on said blade.

11. A unitary skate tooth guard for the teeth ofskate blades provided with a series of projecting teeth and an oppositely directed bearing surface, said guard compris ing a saddle-shaped integral body formed of flexible and extensible material and including an outer section constituting a skate blade engagement portion, inner attachment portions and side flanges connecting said outer section to said attachment portions, said outer section being of arcuate formation with a skate tooth engagement projection intermediate its ends, saidflanges being of skeleton formation comprising edge strips on each side extending from said outer section to said inner attachment portions, said inner attachment portions being of disk formation, one being provided with a frusto-conical orifice having its larger end directed toward the other disk and the other being provided with a corresponding projection of gradually increasing cross sectional area from the base to the tip thereof and of maximum diameter smaller than the maximum diameter of said orifice, said projection being forcibly engageable within said orifice, said side flanges serving tohold said outer section in engagement with said skate blade teeth when said projection is passed to various extents through said orifice behind said blade bearing surface.

References (Jiterll in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,691,558 Tolman Nov. 13, 1928 2,150,964 Dornseif Mar. 21, 1939 2,466,475 Planert Apr. 5, 1949 2,970,359 Dryden Feb. 7, 1961 3,026,119 Bauer Mar. 20, 1962 FOREIGN PATENTS 423,784 Germany Ian. 12, 1926 379,611 Great Britain Sept. 1, 1932 536,193 Great Britain May 6, 1941 

1. A UNITARY GUARD FOR THE TOOTH SECTION OF A SKATE BLADE WHICH COMPRISES A RESILIENT MODERATELY ELASTIC SADDLE-SHAPED BODY HAVING A BEARING SECTION FOR CONTACT WITH THE EDGE OF THE TOOTH SECTION OF THE BLADE AND SIDE FLANGES TERMINATING IN FREE ENDS, SAID FREE ENDS BEING PROVIDED WITH MEANS FOR ATTACHMENT TO EACH OTHER, SAID SIDE FLANGES BEING SUFFICIENTLY LONG TO PROVIDE ATTACHMENT OF THE FREE ENDS ABOVE THE EDGE OF THE SKATE BLADE OPPOSITE THE TOOTH SECTION THEREOF, SAID BEARING SECTION HAVING INTEGRALLY FORMED ON ITS INNER SURFACE A PROJECTING MEANS ADAPTED FOR INTERLOCKING REGISTRY WITH THE TOOTH SECTION OF THE SKATE BLADE, THE OUTER SURFACE OF SAID BEARING SECTION SERVING TO PREVENT THE TOOTH SECTION OF THE SKATE BLADE FROM CAUSING DAMAGE, SAID BEARING SECTION BEING SUFFICIENTLY LONG TO COVER THE TOOTH SECTION OF THE SKATE BLADE. 